Ragnarok Chronicles
by St0rmCh1ld
Summary: Story about a Huntress trying to get by in the land of RuneMidgard and the friends she makes on the way. Cheesey sounding? It's not, really.
1. the poor huntress

Author's Note: Ok, I'm sorry. I don't know if this story will ever be finished as I have lost the inspiration to continue. Most of the characters in this story don't even exist anymore, and the people who played them are asking for their newer characters in it instead. Considering how old this is, and the many updates iRO has had, most of the content wouldn't make any sense to newer players of RO. I'm sorry to those who have been eager to read more. I'm thinking about taking this story down and rebuilding the whole thing if time allows. I do thank everyone so much for their comments and reviews of this story. I am sorry that I didn't get it finished, but truth is, I had no idea where I really wanted to go with it.

Anyhow, I invite anyone to read what is there, but hope you know that it most likely will not be finished. Thanks again everyone.

"THAT'S IT?", came a yell from inside Prontera's bounty hunting headquarters that sits in the middle of the city. "You have got to be kidding me!"

"Nope, sorry miss. Your kills here aren't exactly on Midgard's most dangerous list," said the officer behind the counter. He leaned over looking over the items, shaking his head lightly at the annoyed, red headed, young Huntress in front of him. Sprawled out on the counter between them lies a small sack of random items, ranging from Jellopies to Decaying Nails, none of which was considered to be worth more than one hundred zenny a piece.

"But, but..." she stammered, thinking about the work she put into getting the small, but well worked for, load. Admittedly, it wasn't a lot. And looking over it again herself, she realized the man was right, though she never liked to admit something like that.

"Aww, forget it. Just give me my damn zenny," she huffed, picking up the sack and shoving it in the man's face. Looking a bit annoyed himself at her rude behavior, the officer took the bag and dropped the reward of a few thousand zenny carelessly on the counter in front of him.

"Here's a bit of advice," he sniffed, "stop taking on the small stuff and maybe you'll actually get something better."

"Whatever," she groaned, scooping up the scattered coins into her purse, then heading out the door, slamming it on the way out in frustration.

Outside, the sun shone down in her crystal blue eyes, making her wince at the bright, blazing afternoon sun light. She blinked a few times trying to bring the street into view.

As her eyes started to become adjusted, she glanced around at her busy surroundings. As usual, the streets of Prontera were packed. Everyone was running around in a crazy frenzy, trying to get what they needed from the many merchants and blacksmiths that lined the street's edges. Shouts of items for sale and pleas for items to buy were cried out, as clattering anvils suggested that blacksmiths were taking on jobs from the many random fighters for new and improved weapons.

Prontera was Rune-Midgard's capital city and easily the largest one. Every class could be seen here, either passing by, paying taxes, shopping, forging, or anything else imaginable. Its streets were always packed, from the southern entrance, leading all the way to the castle up north.

Prontera was also a prime city for attack. The war between humans and monsters was never-ending, thus strong monsters always made an attempt to attack the city under the lead and control of greater demons. Along with Prontera's main defense, the Prontera Chivalry, other fighters would always help when needed to keep the capital safe.

There have been only a few times in history where the city has been hit hard, but that only made it more secure in ages to come. Nowadays it was a peaceful city on average, thus keeping it busy with business and the likes.

The Huntress sighed, walking sulkily over to a nearby bench. Slipping her quiver and hunter bow off from her shoulder, she plopped herself down to assess her assets. She untied her coin purse and poured out the light contents into her hand. The sight made her grimace. "A lousy three thousand zenny," she sighed again, "just great..."

"Chisato! Hey Chisato! Are we rich?" came a small, squeaky voice from below the Huntress. Glancing over, she recognized the Poring it came from.

"Tsk, no Cornflakes, not even close. I'd say we're still in the poorhouse ... Wait. No. Even that's too good for us. Maybe the gutter, if we get lucky," Chisato replied grimly.

"Awww..." sighed the Poring, sounding disappointed.

Chisato sat back, outstretching her legs and crossing them together, resting her arms on either side of her across the bench and lifted her head to look up into the semi-cloudless sky. Her long red hair moved out of her face and lay back gently, blowing lightly in the breeze. She breathed in deeply, trying to clear her thoughts.

Cornflakes bounced up from the ground and landed with a squished plop next to her. "What's wrong?" he inquired, seeing she had a distant look on her face.

"It's time we start looking for bigger kills. This chump change I'm raking in just isn't cutting it anymore," she said, not bothering to look at him but keeping her gaze skyward.

"Ha, I've been telling you that all along! Don't I always say '_Chisato, let's go deeper into the pyramids_,'" Cornflakes began in a sing song tone. "_Chisato, let's try something harder than the graveyard at Glast Heim_.' Which, by the way, I know you only hang out in there because there's always some Priest or Acolyte to help or heal you if you get hurt. Or how about '_Chisato, let's-_'"

"All right!" she snapped, swinging her head down and around to look down at the Poring, agitated.

Cornflakes never knew when to keep his mouth shut. He was a little bugger and she let him know it. Always running his mouth at her despite he knew he'd get scolded. She knew he did it just to annoy her.

"But anyway," she began, moving her head back skyward, "we need to start thinking big, or else this is all we'll ever get."

Her gaze became glazed over as she was going deeper in thought, ignoring the busy sounds around her of shuffling feet, clanging hammers and armor, and the voices of the crowd.

The great Chisato Arkain. HA! The people back home in Alberta would laugh at her now if they saw her. She insisted to them she would become a great, rich and maybe even famous Huntress. This was going against her family that was made up mostly of Swordies, Knights and Crusaders, with the exception of the occasional clergy members and merchants. They'd tell her all the time that everyone would rather have a Knight or a Crusader fight by their side. They were more powerful, could stand up to greater foes, they raked in the money.

Hunters, on the other hand, were frowned upon. They were only good for trapping monsters and then cowardly killing them from a distance. Or they would steal your hard earned kills by hitting them from afar while hiding while you were stuck taking all the damage from it. "And," they would remind her daily, "traps and arrows don't come cheap. You'll spend all your earned zenny just buying more."

Her family mocked her relentlessly for her choice. Because of them, she grew to almost resent the Knight class. She had to remind herself constantly not to let them make her hate like that. Still, she found she avoided them when she could, and felt she had to prove she didn't need them. She could do it on her own just as well, if not better, than they could.

She felt her lips fall into a frown. Doubtful thoughts of whether she made the right choice started to invade her thoughts. _'Maybe they were right...,' _she started to think to herself hopelessly, then stopped immediately and shook her head. _'No, no! I can't let them prove me wrong. I will do this. I will make a name for myself. I will not go back there letting them know I'm a failure. I will _not_ give them the satisfaction of making them think they were right!'_ she thought, changing her look of self pity to that of determination.

"Hey, Chisato," she heard Cornflakes' voice breaking her train of thought. The Poring bounced over from her side to her lap, looking up at her with big, sad, sappy black eyes, "I'm hungry."

She sat up and looked down on him bewildered, "Again? You just ate! Geeze, Cornflakes, all you ever think about is food," she bellowed. She stared down on him hard, her eyes locked onto his still pleading sappy eyes until a sudden rumble interrupted the staring contest, making her sneer twist into a sheepish grin. The noise came from her own stomach.

"Well, it's either buy food and then go broke, or buy supplies and hope for something good to supply our pockets later," she said. Cornflakes made a screechy squeaky sound that could be interpreted as a whine.

"Umm, excuse me. Miss?" A soft spoken male voice beckoned from her side. She turned her head up to gaze upon a well built Knight. Chisato stared at him for a few moments, uneasy, finding that her hand was clinging onto her bow.

He was taller than her and more muscular, with armor covering majority of his body. The Kitty Headband he wore in his short, shaggy, silver hair didn't make for much of a helmet though. On his side, in a hilt, lay a Fire Claymore, showing he was also well armed. If he was there on unfriendly terms she wouldn't last long against him. The distance between them was small; his sword would have at her before she could even pull an arrow back to fire at him. Her distrust in Knights was a strong one.

Staying quiet, she observed his face. She then realized that the gentle stare from his silver eyes, that perfectly matched his hair, showed he probably wasn't much of a threat at all. The genuine smile on his lips backed up that fact. Though what could he want, she wondered.

"Erm, yes?" she said finally, feeling a bit awkward.

"Sorry, but I just happened to be close by and couldn't help overhearing your predicament. I thought this might help you," he said, holding out a gloved hand to her.

"What is it?" she inquired, cocking a puzzled brow at him.

"Just a few extra zenny I thought you could use," he smiled.

Chisato cringed. _'I'm a charity case now? Geeze, have I sunk this low?'_ she thought to herself. She shook her head, "No, sorry, I can't accept that," she said bluntly. Chisato didn't like to accept charity from anyone, and there was no way in hell she was going to accept it from a Knight.

Cornflakes began to bounce up and down on her lap. "What? Why not, why not!" he squeaked anxiously.

"Because," she said through gritted teeth, "the last thing I need is to hurt my pride even more by becoming a beggar."

"I understand," the Knight said nodding, moving his hand back to his side and slipping the contents from his hand back into the small pouch on his belt. "But, how about I give you the chance to earn it instead?"

"That depends," she said suspiciously, crossing her arms over her chest. "So long as the job doesn't concern taking care of your personal wants and needs, if you know what I mean," she said, giving him a piercing stare that if he even thought about it he'd be in deep trouble.

"No no no, nothing like that," said the Knight, as a shade of pink invaded his cheeks. "Actually I'm looking for a party to accompany a friend of mine and myself for a hunt at Geffen Tower tomorrow. A Hunter would make a perfect addition to it. So, if you are interested, I can help pay for your supplies and throw in a bit extra for your services."

"Hmmmm...," she thought, moving her hand to her chin, rubbing it a bit and then looking down the antsy Poring on her lap. His sappy black eyes gave her a pleading look as if she didn't take this, he would soon burst.

"Yes, I guess I could do that," she said finally, looking back the Knight with a grin. The proposal was too tempting to pass up, she would be foolish to anyway. She wouldn't normally work for a Knight, but he seemed very nice, and she really needed the zenny. Desperate times called for desperate measures, she thought to herself. She could swallow her pride just this once, or else it would be the only thing she would be eating.

"Excellent," he said sounding pleased, as Cornflakes bounced around on her lap happily. He reached for his coin purse and poured out a nice sized pile of zenny into his hand. "This should pay for your supplies," he said as he reached out his hand to her awaiting one. "And by the way my dear, what's your name?"

"Chisato Arkain," she said as he placed the zenny into her hands, her eyes glittering with the shine of it in the sun. She didn't want to look greedy as she gazed upon the pile, and maneuvered swiftly to put the contents into her purse. "And you?"

"Aaogan Blaine," he nodded. "I shall meet you tomorrow at noon outside of Geffen Tower. Be sure to stock up on elemental arrows and as many traps as you can carry," he winked.

"Sure thing," she grinned, standing up to shake his hand as Cornflakes slid off her lap to the ground with a plop.

He shook her hand then proceeded on his way down the streets of Prontera, turning for one last moment to remind her to also get a good meal for herself and the Poring, before he eventually vanished into the crowd.


	2. the blacksmith

After parting ways with Aaogan, Chisato headed to the armory. She filled her quiver to the brim, stocking up mostly on fire arrows as per Aaogan's request for elementals, along with some silver and regular ones. She also resupplied her dwindling stock of traps.

After a quick stop at the Kafra Corp. employee, located at the south entrance of the city, to store her surplus of arrows and traps, Chisato and Cornflakes headed for the fruit stand.

Cornflakes would not shut up until Chisato had bought him some apples. The whole way there he whined and cried, receiving stares from bypassers, making Chisato red in the face with anger and embarrassment at his behavior. She didn't want people to think she mistreated him. In fact he was quite spoiled in her opinion. He finally shut his mouth when it was too busy chowing down on apples, giving Chisato a chance to eat in peace.

After their stomachs were full, the Huntress and Poring headed west outside the city to do a little hunting. No real dangerous or aggressive monsters spawned here, but they did make good target practice.

Out of the many monsters littering the landscape, Lunatics and Chonchons were her favorites to hunt down. They were fast little critters to chase after, and a challenge was what got her going. They may not be as good as some of the bigger, tougher monsters, but for the small kills, they were always the best. She stayed away from killing other Porings since it made Cornflakes uneasy. The only times she really found herself taking one out purposely was when he would piss her off, saying he'd be next if he didn't knock off his antics.

As she shot down some Chonchons, Cornflakes bounced around quickly to pick up the loot they dropped before any other Porings or Thief Bugs got to it. She said that was the only thing he was ever good at, and sometimes the only thing he was actually good for. It saved her the trouble of rounding up her loot so she could continue to concentrate on hunting.

All seemed to be going well, and the small items that they collected would be enough to resupply the arrows she used to kill them in the first place. It wasn't till she realized Cornflakes had suddenly gone missing that she stopped to figure out where he had gotten to.

It didn't take long to figure it out. His screechy high pitched screams could be heard coming toward her, with what sounded like human footsteps trailing after him.

"Chisato, Chisato! Help me, help me! She's going to kill me," he squealed as he rounded the corner of some shrubbery and leapt into her arms.

"Who?" she asked, looking a bit concerned at the scared and shaken Poring in her arms.

"Me!" came an answer almost right away. Looking up she came eye to eye with who it came from. It was a female Blacksmith, standing almost directly on top of her. Chisato had to take a few steps back to actually see what she looked like, not just her beet red face and emerald green eyes that were shooting daggers at her. She stood about the same height as Chisato, wearing the typical clothing of a Blacksmith, boots, frayed cut up short jean shorts and a tight white top knotted in the middle. She had shoulder length light brown hair, and on her head she wore a Kitty Headband that resembled Aaogan's. But unlike him, she did not appear at all friendly. In her hands she gripped a Fire Chain tightly, ready to take swings at the poor petrified Poring.

"Excuse me, but why in the hell are you attacking my Poring," Chisato growled, not appreciating being approached like this. "It's obvious that he's a pet," she said, motioning to the backpack he wore. This was one of the reasons she had made him wear it, despite his constant moaning and whining that he didn't like it. Other than the fact he could carry some of the items they collected, it also made it apparent that he wasn't just another wild Poring.

"Because," she hissed, "your little Poring here tried to loot items out of my cart!" Her eyes shot fire at him.

Chisato pulled Cornflakes up by his backpack and held him in front of her to look at him face to face, "Is this true?" she said, looking immediately angry at him. He'd be in deep trouble if it was.

"No no! Honest! I, I just wanted to look, that's all. Just curious," he said as he quivered. Chisato stared at him for a few moments, scanning his face. He seemed to be telling the truth. Cornflakes could be a little bugger, but he surely wasn't a thief.

Chisato shook her head at him, and then peered over to the smith, "I'm sorry about that," she said as she lowered Cornflakes back down.

The Blacksmith started to relax a little now, but still looked a bit annoyed, loosing up her grip on the Chain and crossing her arms over her chest. "Your Poring could use a lesson in manners," she said sounding annoyed. "It doesn't look good when a looting monster is found rummaging through your cart. How am I supposed to know he's not there to help himself, hmm?"

Chisato let out an exasperated sigh, "I know. He has a habit of sticking his nose where it doesn't belong sometimes. Heh, and sticking his foot in his mouth," she added in lowly, glaring at the poring again.

"Now how can I do that Chisato, I don't have either," he said wittily with a smirk, but quickly frowned again when he saw the disapproving look on her face saying he was still in deep trouble even if he didn't steal anything.

"I see," said the smith. "A leash would solve that problem you know," she snickered.

Chisato smirked. She could just imagine it now; dragging him around by a leash. He'd probably whine a hell of a lot more than he already did. She rolled her eyes at the thought, she didn't need to hear it anymore than she already did.

With that she released her grip on his backpack and dropped him to the ground. "Again, I'm sorry about that," she said. She then nudged Cornflakes with her foot, "What do you have to say?"

"Sorry," he squeaked lowly.

"It's ok," the smith smiled, "no real harm done. But," she then pointed at Cornflakes and said in a very serious, deadly tone, "if I ever catch you in there again, I'll make Jellopies out of you!"

Cornflakes gasped and grimaced at the thought, looking up at Chisato for support, but only getting a deadly look of _'I'll let her do it' _in return. The smith then looked to Chisato and winked, Chisato winked back.

"Take care," said the Blacksmith as she turned to leave, waving a hand as she headed off. "You too," Chisato replied.

After she was out of sight, Cornflakes looked up at her uneasily. Chisato sank down to the ground and gave him a stern look. "You wouldn't really let her...." he began to say, but saw as Chisato nodded her head slowly with an evil grin, and quickly shut his mouth.

Chisato smiled to herself. The fear he had about being turned into Jellopies saved her the trouble of having to yell at him, it was punishment enough.


	3. the eerie priestess

Night had fallen over Rune-Midgard, bathing the landscape in a quiet blanket of darkness. Stars dotting the sky and the quarter moon gave the only light in the complete darkness of the wilderness.

Chisato and Cornflakes decided to camp out tonight. They had wandered a bit too far from the city, and by the time they called it a night they were too tired to walk back. Chisato never really minded sleeping outdoors, growing accustomed to it. With the limited funds she had, Inn stays were a luxury.

Cornflakes, on the other hand, didn't like it as much, which Chisato thought was odd. But she figured, despite he was a monster and _should_ feel in his element, he grew up domesticated.

The duo gathered up a few trunks to light a fire as the darkness made the landscape a whole lot cooler. After they dropped a sufficient amount into a pile, Chisato pulled out one of the fire arrows from her quiver and struck the pile, which quickly ignited it. Both then relaxed next to the welcome warmth of the budding fire.

Chisato sat with her knees to her chest and her arms wrapped around her legs, resting her head on them and gazing into the flames of the fire. Cornflakes snuggled close to her to keep warm and closed his eyes. It was during nights like this that she wished her choice in clothing was better.

Chisato hadn't realized what time it was before she had fallen asleep. She found her mind wandering most of the night.

Thoughts of her life, what would become of her, what direction exactly was she headed in swirled in her head. Also, she realized she had never thought to ask Aaogan what exactly they were going to Geffen Tower for. She laughed at herself, because for all she knew the task at hand could be a suicide mission, something out of her league. But he had seemed so nice, and obviously thought she could handle it without even asking her how experienced she was.

Confidence and trust in a stranger was something rare you don't see very often these days. She just hoped that he knew what he was doing, and that whoever his friend was knew too. She also hoped she wouldn't end up embarrassing herself in front of a Knight.

------

"Chisato! Hey Chisato!! Wake up!" Cornflakes' screeching voice shattered Chisato's slumber. She had started to wake up, the sun shining brightly in her sleep filled eyes, making it hard for her to open them. "Chisato! Come on, it's getting late! Don't we have somewhere to be today?"

Cornflakes was now bouncing on top of her. She finally sat up, rubbing the sleep out of her eyes, "What time is it?" she asked groggily.

"It's getting close to noon!" Cornflakes sounded concerned.

Apparently Chisato's late night brain racking kept her up longer then she thought. As her fuzzy thoughts finally came into focus, she realized it was almost half an hour till noon, and they were nowhere near Geffen.

"Oh my God!" she screamed as she jumped up with a start, hurriedly and clumsily gathering up her belongings and making a mad dash in the direction of Prontera. Cornflakes bounced behind her, struggling to keep up. As she ran she knew there was no way she was going to make it to Geffen in time by walking, there was only one other choice.

As she approached the city, she realized she had little time. She had to find a Priest or Acolyte as quickly as possible. Though she hated it, and dreaded it, she was going to have to pay for a warp to get there. She never really enjoyed asking for help, it was a last resort. And the price that they asked for casting the warp was outrageous in her opinion.

She stopped at the gates of Prontera to catch her breath, giving poor little Cornflakes time to finally catch up with his master. But she couldn't stop for very long, because now she only had 20 minutes left to find a warp to the city of Geffen, get her items from Kafra Corp., and then meet up with Aaogan at the Tower.

As she moved through the crowded city post haste, almost knocking into other people and getting some nasty comments and stares on her way, she checked to see how much zenny she had left. Her heart sank when she realized there wasn't much. Only four hundred left, and the asking price for warps was one thousand. She swore under her breath, praying that one would give her a break on the price.

To her horror, all shunned her. _"How can a Hunter not have the 1,000z to pay for a warp?"_ was the basic response she got from them all.

"Servants of God my ass!" she said disgusted at them, then started to panic as she sat down on a bench trying to figure out just how she was going to make it in time now. She put her hands over her face on the verge of tears.

_'Way to go Chisato. Something actually good finally comes your way and you screw it up by oversleeping,' _came a nagging little voice from her head.

"Need a warp to Geffen, correct?" came a soft, eerie voice from beside her. Chisato shot her head up to see a Priestess sitting beside her on the bench who seemed to appear out of nowhere. Or maybe she just hadn't noticed her sitting there when she sat down, she thought. The air around the cleric seemed to give off an ominous feeling as the Huntress gazed upon her. She wore the typical habit of a Priestess, but that was where the similarities ended. She sat with her legs crossed and her arms to her side, with her deep, intense brown eyes locked straight into Chisato's crystal blues that seemed as through she were peering straight into her soul. Chisato quickly broke the uneasy eye contact with her by blinking a few times and then looking up, noticing the Demon Wings she wore in her short, dark brown hair. "Well?" the Priestess prompted her.

"Y-yes, I do," Chisato stammered, feeling like she was coming out of a trance.

The Priestess grinned eerily. "Having a little trouble are you?" she said, almost like she was mocking her.

"Yes," Chisato sighed, speaking softly, "they don't seem to realize that not everyone in my position is made of money."

"Tsk tsk," responded the cleric as she shook her head and waved a finger. "I see," she said, then stood up.

Chisato stood up suddenly and grabbed her arm, thinking she was about to leave her now that she had let on she didn't have much zenny.

"Wait, please," she said pleadingly. "Could you warp me there? I really have to get there as soon as possible and I don't have enough zenny to pay the standard price for a warp, but I'll give you what I have." Chisato hated to beg, but she was desperate. She'd probably hear it later from Cornflakes; he wouldn't pass up the opportunity to make fun of her for it.

"That was my intention from the beginning, my dear Huntress," said the Priestess, speaking and looking at her like it should have been obvious. Chisato felt her face go pink and let go of her arm. As she went to pull out the zenny she had, the Priestess took her hand and shook her head. "Don't worry about that."

Chisato looked at her, feeling her face burn even more, "No, I insist you take it. It's not right for me not to pay for it at all." It was bad enough already that she felt she almost had to beg for it, but it would be even worse to get it for free entirely, bringing up the fact that she was too stubborn to ever accept charity.

The Priestess let her hand go. "Fine, if you insist," she said musingly. Chisato handed her what was left of her funds but kept just enough to pay for the Kafra Corp. storage fees.

The Priestess put the Zenny into a small bag that lay on her side, then pulled out a small, blue gem stone. "Thank you Ms...," Chisato began to say in such a way as in asking for her to give her name.

"Kali Jadyn," said the Priestess.

"...Ms. Jadyn," finished Chisato with very grateful smile.

Kali whispered a few words and the stone began to glow. "You're welcome, Ms. Arkain," she said as she threw the stone to Chisato's feet, breaking it open and releasing a blinding blue glow that surrounded her.

"Huh?" was all she had gotten out before she then felt a sudden gust of wind that seemed to whoosh around her entire body.

The gust let up just as quickly as it had picked up, and Chisato now found herself standing in Geffen. She gave a sigh of relief that she had gotten here, and still had a little bit of time to make it over to Kafra and then the Tower before she was labeled as late. But something odd struck her. How did Kali know her name? She couldn't recall saying it.

"Hey, how'd we get here already?" asked Cornflakes, looking dumbstruck.

"What do you mean," Chisato blinked, peering down at the Poring, "you say that like we've never taken a warp before."

"We did?" he said confused.

"Erm, yeah," she said, looking at him like he just lost is marbles.

"But I thought none of the clerics would take your offer?" he squeaked.

Chisato bent down and picked him up by his backpack, held him in her arms, then felt his forehead. "Hmm, you don't feel warm, or maybe you just hit your head on the way out of the warp," she said, analyzing him like he was sick or had gone crazy. "Cornflakes what the hell is wrong with you? Don't you remember Kali finally gave us a warp?"

"Huh? Who's Kali?" he said, sounding even more confused.

Chisato felt her face go white, and she dropped Cornflakes to the ground. "Ok, now I'm freaked," she said, realizing Cornflakes probably wasn't joking.

A distant clock rang out as it struck noon. Standing there trying to figure out just what had happened, she lost track of the time. Chisato scooped up Cornflakes and together they made a beeline toward the Kafra to retrieve her items before they headed for the Tower in the distance. She just hoped Aaogan would forgive her for showing up a few minutes late.


	4. geffen tower

After retrieving her items from the Kafra storage, Chisato ran as fast as she could to get to the Tower, dragging Cornflakes in one hand, her abundance of traps in the other, plus her quiver and bow strapped onto her back. She was almost totally out of breath by the time she had spotted Aaogan near the Tower.

"I-I'm......h-here.....f-f-finally...." she gasped as she stopped in front of him, dropping Cornflakes and her traps to the ground and almost falling over herself under the weight of the quiver on her back. She stood bent over, holding one hand over her chest and using the other to support herself against her knee, trying to catch her breath, feeling totally winded and embarrassed.

Aaogan seemed to hold back on laughing at her. "Glad to see you could make it," he said looking at her amused. He picked her traps up off the ground then ushered her over to a bench to sit down. "Take your time to catch your breath, my friend shall be here soon. She needed to grab some more supplies before we headed down."

Chisato nodded, dropping her quiver and bow to the side of the bench and plopping herself down, feeling winded. She reached back to pull out a small canteen of water from the pouch she wore around her waist. With all that running around she did this morning she hadn't realized how thirsty she was. She drank it eagerly; the cool water on her dry lips and running down her parched throat was a welcome refreshment.

Aaogan placed the chain of traps next to her, and then turned to scan the crowd. No doubt looking for his friend, Chisato thought. Her eyes started to wander around the crowd as well.

Mages and Wizards, with the occasional Sage, could be seen in abundance around them. They were the company that the city kept. The orbicular emerald green city of Geffen was the birthplace of them all.

Geffen was known as the Magical City; surrounded by mystery on its origins. Some say the first city, Geffenia, was destroyed eons ago, and the Geffen that is here today was built on top of it. Rumor has it that the Tower was the link to the old city, and the monster infested areas there today were once the majestic city of the past.

Chisato wondered if Aaogan's friend was a magician. She had never worked with one before, she has seen the power that they could possess. They relied entirely on magic as their greatest weapon, but it could also be their downfall. Monsters could have at them if they were slow to cast their spell since their defenses weren't all that great. It was also hard to get away since they couldn't move while casting the spell, except for Sages, unless it is interrupted by being hit. But then again, the more skilled one was, the deadlier their spells could become, and the faster they could cast them.

Even so, Chisato could never see herself studying magic; she had no patience at all for it. The cleverly placed traps and quick to kill arrows got her blood pumping, but they also deleted her pockets. She sighed, guessing to each their own. Every class had its pros and cons.

"Here she comes," came Aaogan's voice. Chisato slipped the canteen back into her pouch as she stood up next to Aaogan, looking very curious now to see who it was.

A small grin crept over her lips as she saw a familiar face waving to them. She glanced down at Cornflakes, who also noticed who it was, and was now hiding behind Chisato, cowering. It was the Blacksmith from yesterday.

"Well, hello there," the smith smiled as she neared them, pulling a wooden cart full of assorted items from behind her. "Fancy seeing you again," she said to Chisato as she stopped in front of them, lowering the cart down.

"The same," Chisato smiled back.

"You two have met then?" asked Aaogan, seeming surprised.

"Yes, just yesterday," said the smith as she then turned around to reexamine the contents of her cart, double checking to make sure she had everything. "Aaogan said he had found us some help. Who would have thought-" she said, starting to trail off a bit as she moved items around too look deeper into the cart. "But I never did get your name," she finished, as it seemed she was satisfied with her load and turned back around to face Chisato.

"Chisato Arkain," Chisato said, extending her hand to her.

"I'm Thoma," said the smith, shaking her hand.

"Have everything you need, Thoma?" asked Aaogan as he peered over her shoulder into the cart.

"I think so. There should be plenty of Reds and stuff for us all," she replied, sweeping over the items once more with her eyes.

She looked back over to Chisato, then noticed the large amount of traps and arrows she had left on the bench behind her. "Those yours?" she asked, pointing to the pile.

Chisato looked back and nodded, giving a slight grimace to the thought of lugging those around again.

"You can stick some of those in here if you like," she said. "Can't see you breaking your back carrying all those down there."

Chisato thanked Thoma graciously. She was starting to feel sore from running around with those strapped onto her, and it was a welcome relief not having to have to carry them all now.

"So umm, what exactly we are doing at the Tower, Aaogan? You never did tell me yesterday," Chisato finally asked, figuring now was as good a time as any.

Thoma laughed nudging Aaogan with her elbow, "Oh, you're good. You asked her to help without even telling her what we're doing?" she said, helping Chisato place the traps into her cart.

Chisato blushed. She had also accepted without even asking, and prayed Thoma wouldn't point that out next.

"I was just trying to give an honest person a chance to earn some zenny, that's all," Aaogan said looking sheepish. "But anyway," he continued without letting either comment any further, "we are hunting Whispers."

Chisato's mouth dropped. It was obvious why they were hunting them. "For- for the card?" Chisato stammered.

He nodded. "Yes, Thoma has been searching for one for ages. But then again, haven't we all," said Aaogan with a grin.

Chisato placed her hand to her forehead, looking down in disbelief.

Cards were the essence of the monsters themselves, so named because of their shape. Each looked to hold a holographic image of the monster placed on a card, and each gave the holder a specific boost or ability. They could be compounded into one's weaponry, armor, etc etc, giving them the ability to tap into this power. Some monster cards were more sought out than others, and Whisper cards were one of the better prized, giving its wearer the ability to dodge their enemies at a higher rate. They were rare and highly expensive.

"Oh wow," Chisato said, shocked. She knew it'd be a miracle if they actually found one.

"So, not going to back out now are you?" Aaogan said. "Hope you're not afraid of ghosts," he snickered. Whispers appeared similar to ghosts; like pieces of flying cloth that give the illusion of one.

"Of course not," she answered, sounding thrilled. "I wouldn't want to miss out on this." This would definitely be a challenge, and she surely wouldn't want to miss out on such a chance as to find a Whisper card. Besides, she thought, if she backed out now she would end up looking like a wuss in front of a Knight. She couldn't have that.

"Great!" Thoma replied, "Let's go then."

Chisato strapped her quiver onto her back and took her bow in hand when she noticed Cornflakes hanging very close to her feet. "Almost forgot you were there. How come you're so quiet?" she asked, raising a brow at the usual chatty Poring.

"No reason. Nope, no reason at all," he squeaked, but she noticed he shot looks up to Thoma.

Chisato grinned evilly, remember he was still afraid that Thoma might turn him into Jellopies. Thoma had caught on as she looked from Cornflakes to Chisato, then looked back to Cornflakes with a devious smiles, making the little Poring give out an "eep" as he bounced away faster into the doorway of the tower.

Entering the tower, they found themselves looking down a long, brightly lit hallway. On the left stood a set of elegant stairs heading upward, while straight ahead laid another set of stairs leading down. They headed for the stairs straight ahead of them. The small room downstairs was dimly lit, and yet another set of small stairs lay ahead. It got darker as they went down, only spotting a few people here and there sitting on the ground resting. They walked down a long corridor, boxes scattered along the sides with spider webs littering the corners. Chisato shuddered at the thought of spiders lurking about, they gave her the willies.

They finally found themselves nearing an entryway with a dim reddish purple light emitting from it. This was the first floor of the Geffen Tower. Many beginning classes came here to train, for this place was a major spawning point for Poison Spores; monsters that appeared to be big black mushrooms. Chisato found them to be extremely annoying. They died easily, but the large volume of them made them a nuisance. The trio rounded the passageways, having to fend them off as they seemed to come out of every dark corner to attack them. And as if the Spores weren't already bad, they also had to deal with Familiars, bat like creatures that swooped down at anything and everything that got too close to them; Poporings, looting monsters similar to Porings except slightly bigger and green in color; and Dustiness, non-aggressive moth like bugs. These monsters slowed them down, but didn't hinder them too much.

It wasn't long before they found themselves at the entrance of the second level. Aaogan decided to give them a sort of prep talk before heading down.

"Ok now, so you know we have to watch each others backs down here. Whispers aren't the only things we have to worry about. Argos and Jakks are down here too. But if we stick together we should be fine."

"Yeah yeah, I know Aaogan. I've been here plenty of times before," said Thoma waving him off. Chisato hadn't been though, this was her first time going to level two. Jakks, pumpkin headed monsters that sprung around on their tiny little bodies, didn't bother her; it was the Argos. She could feel a chill run down her spine at the thought of them down there. They appeared to be huge spiders and they moved at a relatively fast pace for their size. Running into them was no picnic for her, and she avoided them whenever she could. But she reassured herself that it shouldn't be so bad having Aaogan and Thoma with her. She'd try to leave those to them if at all possible.

Upon agreeing they were all ready, they headed down.


	5. the lone wolf

Chisato, Aaogan and Thoma stood at the entrance to level two of Geffen Tower, with Cornflakes close by at Chisato's feet. Chisato had never been here before, but Thoma and Aaogan seemed to be familiar with it.

The air about the Tower seemed musty and moldy with a slight chill to it. Chisato shivered despite herself. It was darker down here than the floor above with only a few torches lit scattered around. Walking straight forward, she noticed on either side of them what looked to be ruins of great structures built long ago. It made the rumors of Geffen all the more real. Chisato could feel excitement build in her thinking about it, but she didn't have long to relish in the feeling.

It wasn't long before they found themselves being attacked by a few Whispers. The fast flying ghost like creatures made a whizzing noise as they rushed forward to attack. The three of them immediately fell into a fighting stance, each ready to attack them at once. Aaogan swung his Fire Claymore at the first one, hacking at its sheet like cover. Thoma bashed at a second with her Fire Chain, knocking it sideways with the blow and stunning it. Chisato trapped and shot down a third using Fire arrows, igniting it into flames at once.

The Whispers were exterminated quickly by the elemental weapons as Cornflakes bounced about picking up the remains of their kills. Chisato heard a loud ding as her Whisper had disintegrated; it dropped something. She picked it up and examined it, twirling it around with her fingers. It looked like a hoop with a long pole sticking out the bottom with what appeared to be something to hold it into place. She had no idea what it was though.

"Check this out," she said as Thoma and Aaogan moved closer to have a look.

"It's a Halo," Thoma giggled as she gave it a look over, then placed it on Chisato's head.

"It looks cute on you," Aaogan smiled as Chisato felt around it, feeling her face burn a bit at being called cute.

It wasn't long before they were attacked again, this time by a group consisting of Familiars, a couple Argos and a Jakk. Chisato flipped back to keep a safe distance from the Argos, then threw down a trap for the Jakk and started to shoot at it. Thoma and Aaogan bashed and hacked away at the Familiars first, then the Argos, as Chisato came to a fearful realization that Fire arrows had no effect on the Jakk. Aaogan and Thoma finished off the Argos and Familiars when they noticed Chisato's problem.

"Use Silvers!" they called to her. She took their advice, swiftly taking out the few that she had and let them fly. It worked. Its pumpkin head broke open with a loud crack and splattered about, leaving a nasty mess behind. It gave off the smell of rot as it began to disintegrate, making her turn up her nose. Thoma and Aaogan shot her a thumbs up for a job well done.

The trio only had a short amount of time to do or say anything before they were attacked again. Each time they were quick to act, and without fail they came out victorious. Teamwork was the key to taking them down, each covering the others' back. The collection of Red potions in Thoma's cart had barely been touched.

After half an hour had passed, and about a few dozen Whispers later, still no card. But Chisato didn't care too much. She and the others seemed to be enjoying themselves. She couldn't remember the last time she had worked with anyone, preferring to solo. But she found Thoma and Aaogan to be great company and hoped that they would party up again sometime in the future.

An hour passed, still no card. Two, two and a half, three, four hours, still no card. They were wearing down now, their collection of Red potions starting to dwindle.

"Ok, maybe we should call it quits for now," Thoma said, looking wound down.

The three of them were sitting down, facing each other in a triangular shape on the floor. Chisato agreed, and so did Aaogan. She was feeling sore, and Cornflakes kept complaining he was hungry. Thoma and Aaogan looked equally beat, both agreed food sounded like a pretty good idea. They stood up and dusted themselves off, ready to make their way back up the Tower.

As they began to walk back, they suddenly heard cries and shouts echoing as if someone was being ambushed nearby. They all turned in the direction the sound came from, glancing back at each other, then agreed silently to go investigate.

Rushing forward, rounding a nearby corner, they found the origin. It was a Knight being attacked from all sides by about seven Whispers, and a few Poison Spores to add insult to injury. He cried out angrily as he'd slash at one only to be hit by a few others. He looked beaten up and weary and they knew he wouldn't last much longer if this kept up. Chisato threw down a few traps as Thoma and Aaogan dashed forward to the Knight. They began to pick off some of the Whispers as Chisato shot at the Spores.

The Knight gave out a holler, "No, don't!" he wheezed. "I can handle this myself," he screamed as he tried to swing at one of the Whispers, but was then smacked again hard from behind, pushing him down to the floor.

"Don't be stupid," Thoma chided as she was bashing down on a Whisper, "there's no way you can handle them all in your condition."

The Knight laid face down and motionless on the floor. The trio hurriedly tried to finish off the Whispers and Spores, and within a few moments they were gone. Thoma then ran and grabbed a Yggdrasil Leaf and a few of the Reds left in her cart then rushed back over to him, Chisato and Aaogan already by his side.

Aaogan turned him onto his back, then supported his head so that Thoma could give him the leaf. Chisato knelt down next to them pushing some of the Knight's shaggy brown hair from his beaten face, wondering if he was still alive, and hoping they weren't too late. Thoma then placed the potion's bottle to his lips, pouring it slowly so that he wouldn't choke on it. He seemed to respond slightly as they could see he swallowed it. He slowly started to come back around, his eyes fluttering open.

Chisato breathed a sigh of relief to see that he was still alive. His teal eyes shot around them all confused. He shot up to sit straight and glanced around, pushing them all back from him in surprise. "I told you not to help me," he hissed.

"Is that any way to talk to the people who just saved your life?" Chisato growled back.

"I never asked you to," he said hoarsely.

"Hmph, whatever," Chisato said, standing up. To think she was glad to see him alive. She crossed her arms and turned her back to him.

"Oh, so you would have rather us let you die then?" said Thoma, joining Chisato, crossing her arms as well but keeping an annoyed look on him.

"It would have been an honorable death," he coughed, trying to get to his feet but stumbling around as he was looking punch drunk.

"There's not much honor in having a bunch of low leveled monsters kick your ass," Aaogan said, looking equally annoyed as the other two as he got to his feet.

The Knight was using a Fire Bastard sword to prop himself up, looking very unsteady. He seemed to look irritated and dazed, like he had just been jolted awake from a long, deep sleep. The Ygg leaf and Red potions should have been plenty to get him back to health. They didn't understand what his problem was.

"How long have you been down here," Aaogan asked.

The Knight shot him an unfocused look, then seemed to be thinking about it. "I'd say twelve to fourteen hours, give or take," he said lowly.

Chisato stared at him wide eyed. No wonder he looked the way he did.

"He's crazy!" Cornflakes squeaked, saying exactly what they all had been thinking.

"We should just leave him here," Thoma said bitterly. "He obviously doesn't want our help."

Aaogan watched him, looking to be thinking long and hard about what to do with him.

They watched momentarily as a Familiar had flown up to him to attack. The Knight looked to struggle to even lift his sword to hit it, swinging it around blindly. With that, Aaogan walked over and took it down with one fluid swoop from his Claymore. He then put his arm under the Knight's shoulder to support him before he would find himself back on the floor. The Knight resisted at first, trying to pull away from Aaogan, but had little energy to keep it up, and finally gave in. Aaogan looked back to Chisato and Thoma, titling his head motioning to the Knight, beckoning one of them over the help him as he was now shifting his weight onto Aaogan.

Chisato felt her face burn. As much as she would love to just leave an ungrateful and insane idiot like him here to perish at his own wishes, she couldn't find it in herself to do it. Chisato reluctantly joined him, taking the Knight by his other side to support him. He was quite heavy. Along with being muscular, his armor added on extra weight.

Thoma grabbed her cart and led the way as they walked back to the entrance.

The way back up was laboring. Thoma had to fend off the Poison Spores and Familiars on the first floor by herself as Chisato and Aaogan dragged along the Knight who could just about walk on his own.

It was a miracle when they finally made it to the Geffen Inn. They laid the Knight to rest in a room adjacent to the one Aaogan had got and decided to go and get something to eat, figuring he would be fine on his own, and most likely, out cold for a long while.

Over dinner they discussed what to do with the loot they collected, deciding to split it all equally. Even split between them, it would be a nice bout of zenny for each.

"It's a shame we didn't find the card," Chisato said disappointed between mouthfuls of food. She was starving now, scarfing down food like she'd never eaten before. Cornflakes was just as eagerly chowing down apples on the floor next to her chair. She had missed breakfast and lunch that day due to oversleeping, and had explained that to Aaogan and Thoma who eyed her perplexingly as she inhaled her food.

"It's ok," Thoma said, taking a swig from her goblet. "It was still a good time though."

Aaogan concurred.

After they were full, each headed up to bed, deciding to wait till morning to head to the bounty office to cash in their loot. They each agreed that after all the fighting, they needed a good night's sleep.

Chisato had changed her clothes and plopped onto her bed. It had been a while since the last time she stayed at an Inn. The soft warm bed was a welcome comfort over the cold hard ground. Cornflakes found himself a pillow to rest on and began to doze off.

"Those two are kind of nice, aren't they," Cornflakes said groggily.

"Yeah, they are," Chisato said and smiled, feeling kinda lucky, though a little guilty about the way she had reacted to Aaogan when they first met. She laid on her stomach, resting her head on a pillow and looking up and out the window behind her bed. She gazed out into the dusking sky as shades of orange and red slashed about as the sun sank into the horizon, a few stars already starting to dot the sky.

"Not like that Knight, huh?" Cornflakes said, yawning.

Chisato didn't say anything. She looked down to her pillow and frowned. She wondered how anyone could overtax themselves like he did. He would have rather died than have them help him. She never heard such foolishness. Knights were fools anyway in her opinion. Sure, she hated asking for help. But if it was a life or death situation, she sure as hell wasn't going to let her pride keep her from seeking it. She loved living and shuddered at the thought of dying now. She was only twenty-two and there was still so much to do, to look forward to, to prove to herself and others. Having it end now was the most depressing thing she could fathom.

She pushed that thought from her mind, not wanting to fall asleep with those thoughts still lurking about. She could hear the soft breathing from Cornflakes next to her, he had fallen asleep. She smiled at him. He was so cute when he slept, probably because it was the only time he was actually quiet. She stroked his head a few times, then rolled over to her side, pulling the covers over her and shut her eyes. It had been a very long, somewhat confusing, a little disappointing, but overall, worthwhile day.


	6. la bleu girl

Chisato woke up early the next morning to the wailing of Cornflakes. "Chisato! Hey! CHISATO! WAKE UP!" he squealed at her, bouncing up and down on her stomach to wake her up.

"W-wha.... what's wrong?" she said groggily, trying to push him off her.

"I'm hungry Chisato! I smell food. Please get up so we can go eat. Please please please!" he wailed on.

She sat up rubbing her eyes, then looked down at Cornflakes miserably. She hated getting up and Cornflakes did this every morning. If she didn't get up before he did, and especially if he's hungry, he'd make her get up.

Cornflakes then began to push himself against her, trying, but failing, to push her out of the bed. "Come on, come on, get up! Get up before all the good stuff is gone," he squeaked impatiently.

Chisato moved out of bed slowly, putting her bare feet on the cold hardwood floor, making her shiver. Cornflakes was bouncing around happily behind her on the bed, edging her to hurry up. She gave out a loud yawn as she stretched, then moved over to a large water basin and splashed her face in an effort to wake herself up more. She jumped as the ice cold water hit her face, then washed herself up a bit before getting dressed. Chisato wondered if the others had gotten up yet as she then headed downstairs.

The Inn downstairs was kind of empty as it was still early in the morning. It was filled with the aroma of freshly cooked bread, meat, and other baked goods, giving the quaint Inn a homely feel. Chisato gazed around, then noticed Thoma sitting at a table near the corner of the room. Chisato walked over to join her, ignoring Cornflakes' squeals for attention over at the table piled with food. She sat down across the table from her.

Thoma had a large parchment in front of her, writing on it vigorously with a quill pen. She had a plate of food on one side of her and a small bottle of ink on the other.

"Good morning," Chisato interrupted her.

Thoma looked up briefly. "Good morning," she smiled, then looked back down to her paper work.

"What are you doing?" Chisato inquired, hoping not to sound nosey.

"Taking inventory," Thoma replied as she continued to scribble onto the parchment.

Chisato noticed written down on her parchment a few choice words, such as 'Iron Ore,' 'Red Potion,' and 'Crystal Blue,' all with zenny amounts next to them.

"Where's Aaogan," Chisato asked, wondering if he was even up yet, gazing back briefly around the room to see if maybe she missed him.

"Bounty office," she said. "Wanted to get there early.... Cash in our loot and all..."

Thoma dipped the quill into the small bottle of ink next to her, then made a few more small notes to the side of her parchment. She seemed really into her work.

Chisato didn't want to bother her too much so she decided she might as well grab something to eat, especially with Cornflakes now gnawing at her ankles to get her attention for some food.

Chisato helped herself to the complementary breakfast buffet, getting herself and Cornflakes some food, then joined Thoma back at the table. By then Thoma seemed to have finished up her work as she rolled up the parchment and put it aside.

"So, you plan on going back to the tower today?" Chisato asked as she laid a plate down full of fruit on the floor for Cornflakes. Chisato was half hoping they would go, but the other half was hoping for a break. Yesterday was a bit exhausting.

"Nah," said Thoma as she finally started picking at her untouched food, "I think I'm going to take it easy today and vend some stuff."

Chisato nodded as she placed her plate down on the table and sat down across from Thoma.

"How about you?" Thoma asked.

"Don't know," said Chisato. "Relaxing sounds like a good idea after the day I had yesterday."

Chisato then started to tell Thoma over breakfast about yesterday's events before getting to the Tower; how she had gotten up late and the strange Priestess that had warped her to Geffen. Thoma looked bewildered.

"Well, there's a possibility she teleported next to you," Thoma said, appearing to try and find logical explanations as she shifted around pieces of cut up fruit on her plate. "But then how would she know where you needed to go.... And your name... Very strange indeed..." she trailed off as she bit into a large chunk of melon.

"What's strange?" came Aaogan's voice from behind Chisato. Thoma told him what happened as he placed down a small bag of zenny next to each of them, their bounty from yesterday, and sat down to join them for breakfast.

"Yeah, sounds a lot like she teleported," he said as he cut into the steak on his plate. "  
And she probably heard you asking the other Priests for a warp."

Chisato nodded, that had made sense. "But, what about knowing my name?"

Aaogan looked at her for a moment, looking to be thinking on that one as he chewed on a small piece of steak. "Maybe she's seen you before. She could have overheard you say it somewhere" he said finally before helping himself to another piece.

Thoma snickered through a swig from her goblet. "You almost make this Priestess sound like a stalker."

Chisato shifted uneasily in her chair and glanced up Thoma from her plate. That thought freaked her out even more. The last thing she needed was some freaky eerie person watching over her.

"I...still....don't know....what you are....talking.....about...." came a squeaky voice from the floor. Cornflakes was talking with his mouth full of food. "I do not...even remember....such a thing....Gali or whatever her name was."

"That's right!" Chisato exclaimed, picking Cornflakes up from the ground into their view and telling them how he had told her that he didn't even know how they got to Geffen.

"Maybe he was too busy nosing around in someone's cart," Thoma snorted, flashing Cornflakes a look that she didn't forget what he did a couple days ago.

"I was not," Cornflakes said defensively as he then started to wriggle around to get loose from Chisato's hold. Chisato let him go and he immediately bounced away from their view to indulge himself again in his food.

Chisato, Aaogan and Thoma chatted a bit longer as they ate when someone interrupted from behind.

"You're the three who helped me yesterday, aren't you," said a male voice.

Chisato turned around surprised to see it was the Knight from Geffen Tower, only he looked a whole lot better today than he did the day before. He cleaned himself up; his face now washed, along with his short brown hair that was combed neatly on his sides. His teal eyes gave a twinkle and Chisato could have sworn she caught a smile. At first she wasn't even sure it was the same guy. The dramatic change in appearance and attitude was shocking.

"Yeah, that's right," said Aaogan, standing up between the Knight, Chisato and Thoma incase he was going to start trouble. Chisato couldn't blame Aaogan for reacting this way after how the Knight behaved yesterday, though judging from his appearance today, they might be surprised.

"I just wanted to thank you guys and apologize for my rude behavior," he said softly, bowing slightly. " I was a bit out of line yesterday, and I hope you will forgive me for it."

They stared at him quietly for a few moments, dumbfounded. Chisato knew that Thoma and Aaogan thought and felt the same way. How could he go from being a rude jackass to being so polite overnight?

The Knight stared back, looking uneasy as if he was afraid they would chastise him. "Please, I really am sorry," he said again, a hint of despair in his voice. "I owe you three my life. If there is any way I can make it up to you, just let me know" he finished, bowing his head down and keeping his gaze to the floor.

Aaogan patted the Knight's shoulder, and the Knight returned his gaze back up at them. "It's ok. You seem to mean it," he grinned.

"Of course," the Knight said, looking and sounding apologetic. "I know I have a bad habit of losing my temper," he said lowly, his eyes not seeming to rest on any of them but moving around uncomfortably. "I guess, I was a bit embarrassed, at getting my ass whooped. But still, that gives me no excuse to talk to you three the way I did."

Chisato and Thoma exchanged glances, both thinking the same thing. They felt guilty at having suggested to leave him there after he protested so much. They then stood up and joined Aaogan on either side.

"Don't worry about it," said Thoma softly as she fiddled with the Kitty Band on her head.

"Just did what was right," said Chisato, rubbing the back of her head, causing her Halo to lean a bit lopsided.

The Knight smiled at them all, appearing relieved, probably glad they hadn't given him the same attitude he gave them yesterday.

"So, what's your name," asked Aaogan to the Knight.

"My name is Fanged Wolf," he replied "People usually refer to me as the Lone Wolf though. I kind of have a reputation for keeping to myself," he grinned slyly.

"Guess that's a good excuse for your lack of people skills," Chisato said under her breath, not really meaning to say it aloud in the first place.

Fanged looked at her quizzically. "Excuse me?"

"Oh, erm, nice to meet you Fanged," she smiled half-heartedly, extending her hand to him. "My name is Chisato."

"Nice to meet you too, I guess" he said with an unsure grin, taking her hand into his and shaking it lightly.

Thoma and Aaogan introduced themselves as well.

Fanged sat down with them for a bit of food before the four of them headed outside, with Cornflakes following close behind Chisato.

"Well, my friends, I'm afraid I must go," said Aaogan turning to them as they stepped out into the semi-crowded streets of Geffen. "I have someone waiting for my return."

Thoma grinned as if she expected this to come. "Ok Aaogan. Tell Laurel I said 'Hi,'" she said.

Aaogan smiled and hugged her, "Will do."

He then turned to Chisato, "It was a pleasure to meet you Chisato, and it was so nice working with you," he said taking her hand in his and patting it.

"The same," said Chisato, feeling kind of sad to see him go. "If you ever need help again Aaogan, you can count on me," she smiled.

Aaogan nodded. "You bet I will," he said, then let go of her hand and turned to Fanged. "I hope we meet again soon, Mr. Lone Wolf," he said, then gave Fanged a warrior's hand shake.

"I'm looking forward to it," said Fanged.

Aaogan nodded to them all, then walked off with a slight bounce in his step.

"He's going back to his fiancée," Thoma said before they even got a chance to ask.

"I see," said Chisato grinning as she watched him walking away as he looked eager to get to where he was going.

"So," said Thoma turning to Chisato after Aaogan was well out of sight, "did you want to come hang out with me for a while Chisato? Umm, that is, if you're not busy. Vending can get a bit boring at times. And, well, I thought it might be nice to have someone to talk to."

"Sure," Chisato smiled. "I don't really have anything planned. And, erm, be nice to have some company in case that crazy Priestess is still stalking me," she laughed.

Thoma smiled and laughed, "Ok then."

They looked back to Fanged who was watching them both.

"Umm, would you like to come too?" asked Thoma, sounding like she really didn't know what to say to him.

He smiled at them and said, "Alright, but just for a bit. I'll need to head back into the Tower to train some more. I can't slack off now, especially after nearly getting killed. Just goes to show I need more practice."

Chisato rolled her eyes at him, but this time keeping her snide comment to herself. They didn't need to have to go rescue his sorry ass again if he got whooped there once more, she thought.

----

Thoma set up shop southeast in the city on a street most people referred to as "Blacksmith's Row." It got his nickname from the fact that many Blacksmiths set up their shops for forging here, and the fact that the Blacksmith Academy was located on the same street. Many of the smiths could be seen in the company of a Priest or Priestess, as they always said they brought them good luck. Thoma had commented that one of these days she'd find herself one if she ever got around to learning to forge.

Chisato looked at her wide eyed in surprise. "You don't know how to forge Thoma?"

"Well, no," Thoma said, looking a bit embarrassed, turning her gaze away from Chisato and Fanged and pretending to be busy looking for something so they would not notice. "I'm a Battle Smith after all. I can't very well learn to forge if I'm busy killing monsters now can I?"

Chisato giggled, "I see. And you fight so well too. I was impressed when we were at the Tower," she said, thinking back to how well Thoma handled herself in battle. "You don't see too many Battle Smiths these days."

"I guess we are a bit of a rare breed," said Thoma, looking back to Chisato with a pleased look on her face. "Besides, if I had to sit around all day forging and vending I'd probably go crazy."

Chisato looked over to Fanged, who was sitting next to her, as he seemed to be awfully quiet, while Thoma had turned her attention over to a customer. She noticed he was staring at a few magicians who were sitting down near them. It was a female Sage and a male and female Mage talking amongst themselves. At first Chisato thought Fanged was ogling at the girls, for the females where dressed very scantily.

"Fanged, what-" she began to say.

"Shh," he said interrupting her. "Listen to this." He said motioning over to the magic folk, keeping his gaze on them.

Chisato listened in, straining to hear them over the surrounding noises of the city.

"That Wizard is a disgrace," said the female Sage with distain.

"Maybe we should go put him out of his misery," said the female Mage, laughing.

"Yeah, really. I don't know why he would want such ugly things as Munaks," said the male Mage. "I know I wouldn't, especially when I have two lively, and also beautiful, ladies right here," he said sitting between them and putting his arms around them both, looking like he just hit the jackpot.

"Eww, get off me Holy," shouted the blond haired Sage as she threw his arm off her.

"You know you love me Katrina," he said grinning seductively at her.

The blond haired Mage also removed his arm from around her, "You can be such a scrub, you know that," she shouted at him.

"Aww, you know you love me too Cassandra."

The girls both stood up and moved away from him, continuing to talk.

Chisato, Thoma and Fanged all seemed to be listening in now.

"I'd love to go down to Payon Caves and check it out for myself, but I heard he gets really defensive if you try and hurt the Munaks," said Cassandra.

"Isn't there a bounty on his head too?" said Katrina. "Heard he's been causing so much of a disturbance down there that the Payon guards have put out a five million zenny bounty on him."

"Aww, the man just loves his Munaks, is that such a sin?" said Holy, getting up and moving himself closer to the girls again. "He's just a ladies man for the undead. Though I like mine very much alive and frisky," he said eyeing both girls like fresh meat. He then proceeded to grab them both from behind. "I'm feeling really into sisters right about now."

Both girls turned around looking angry and annoyed at him constantly coming onto them. Katrina whispered something to Cassandra, then both turned to him with devious grins.

"FIREBOLT!" they scream simultaneously as they outstretched their arms in his direction. Flames shot down from the sky and hit Holy on both sides, just missing him but singeing his clothing. Holy stood their looking shocked for a moment.

Chisato knew if the girls wanted to hit him directly, he would have been a pile of ashes.

"See, I knew you two had the hots for me," he said winking, shaking off what just happened like it was no big deal. "Now come here and give your man some sugar," he said, moving toward the girls looking for kisses.

Both girls pushed him away and started to walk off in the opposite direction of him in a hurry. He followed in pursuit shouting, "Playing hard to get, I know. Just stop denying your feelings and admit you love me!"

Chisato laughed at it all, she couldn't help it. She heard Thoma and Fanged give a snicker too.

"Geeze, how lame can you be," said Fanged as he watched the hopeless Mage chase after the girls. He then looked back to Chisato and Thoma.

"Don't get any ideas now Fanged," said Chisato as he smiled deviously at them.

"Of course not," he said. "I have a little more respect for myself and others than that guy." Something in Fanged's tone made it sound like what he said wasn't entirely true.

"What was that they were talking about?" asked Thoma as she just finished with another customer.

"Some creepy Wizard in Payon Caves," said Fanged. "Sounded kind of interesting. Wonder why some Wiz would want to hang around with Munaks."

"Maybe he's a necrophiliac," Chisato laughed.

"The only thing I caught was them saying about a crazy Wizard with a big bounty on his head," said Thoma, who had been busy with customers coming and going.

"Yeah, it sounds like a good amount of cash for some crazed Wizard with a fetish," said Fanged.

The three of them looked back and forth at each other, seeming to get the same idea.

"Hey, you think..... Just maybe..." said Fanged warily.

"It would be a lot of zenny split three ways too," said Thoma, sounding really interested in the idea.

Chisato thought about it. Cashing in a nice big bounty for bringing in some psycho guy sounded almost too easy, and with Thoma and Fanged, they would probably be able to do it. She just hoped that Fanged's performance in Geffen Tower when they met him wouldn't be the same today. She snickered at the thought of the Knight being outdone by her.

"Sounds like a plan to me," said Chisato. _'So much for taking it easy today,' _she thought to herself.

"Now that does sound interesting," came a soft female voice from close by them. Chisato peered around to see a Priestess sitting nearby, watching them. She had shoulder length dark blue hair with two braids tied in the front, and a pair of Angel Wings protruding from the top of her head. Her dark blue eyes scanned each of them, and she seemed to give off the same eerie feeling Chisato had gotten from Kali.

The three of them stared blankly at her for a moment, though Chisato avoided eye contact with her in remembrance of her encounter with Kali yesterday.

The Priestess stared at them quietly and smiled charismatically, then finally said, "Sorry, I didn't mean to eavesdrop on your conversation."

"It's ok," said Thoma, breaking the silence of the three.

"Yeah, not like we weren't guilty of the same thing ourselves," chuckled Fanged.

Chisato said nothing and sat quietly, wondering if Thoma and Fanged thought the Priestess seemed eerie too.

"So, planning to go investigate it yourselves are you?" asked the Priestess with an amused grin, referring back to the conversation that the magicians had.

"Sure, why not?" said Fanged, shrugging and rising to his feet.

"You wouldn't by any chance have a warp to Payon would you?" asked Thoma who was now standing next to Chisato and packing up her cart, preparing to go.

"Yes, I do," said the Priestess, rising to her feet. "But are you positive you want to go?"

"Well, yeah, I guess," said Fanged. "Why? Are you worried about us?" he grinned devilishly.

Chisato continued to sit there quiet and studied her. She couldn't help but think this was weird. There was something about her that was all too similar to Kali, but almost quite the opposite as well. But what was it? Was this all just coincidence?

"Maybe," the cleric smiled coyly.

"Why don't you come along then?" said Fanged. "A Priestess is always nice company," he said, keeping that same devious grin.

Chisato felt herself gasp, but it seemed to go unnoticed by them all. Not that she didn't agree with Fanged; a healer was always nice to have by one's side, but she seemed kind of creepy.

_'But why do you think that?'_ came a voice from within, almost like someone other than herself was asking the question.

"I don't know," Chisato felt herself say out loud.

"What don't you know?" asked Thoma as she finished loading her stock into her cart and glancing over at her.

"Oh, umm," Chisato said, trying to come up with an answer quickly as not to look stupid. "Just commenting on the fact that we would probably be ok, with or without a healer along, that's all. I mean, us three against a psycho Wiz..... Umm... Never mind...." she said, realizing how weird it sounded.

Thoma chuckled at her.

Chisato tried to convince herself that yesterday's encounter just left her feeling awkward. _'Stop being stupid,'_ she thought to herself.

"So will you join us?" asked Thoma, turning to the Priestess.

"Sure," the cleric smiled.

"Awesome," said Fanged.

Chisato stood up now and looked around for Cornflakes. She caught him sneaking a peek into Thoma's cart, and yanked him away from it quickly before Thoma found him in there.

"Are you ready then?" asked the Priestess, as she reached into a small bag on her side. "Oh, and where are my manners," she simpered. "I haven't introduced myself. My name is Bleu."

"Fitting name," giggled Thoma, referring to her blue hair and eyes. "I would be Thoma."

"And very pretty," said Fanged, making it obvious now that he was being flirty. "It fits you well. My name is Fanged Wolf."

"And you, my dear?" asked Bleu, looking over to the ever quiet Chisato.

"Chisato Arkain," Chisato said, giving a small smile. Chisato felt somewhat relieved that Bleu had to ask her name and didn't know it already.

"Perfect," smiled Bleu as she pulled her hand from her bag, holding a small blue gem stone.

Bleu chanted on it softly, then threw it to the ground. A bright blue light erupted from the spot it had fallen, then created what looked like a white wind tunnel; a warp portal.

Fanged moved into it first, then Thoma. Chisato, however, hesitated. She stared at Bleu for a few fleeting moments. She wondered if she should ask her something, but then realized she didn't even know what the question was.

"Well, go on now Chisato," Bleu said, waving her onward, "don't want to get left behind now, right?"

"Right," said Chisato, giving her a nod and the moving forward into it with Cornflakes in hand.

She felt the sudden gust of air encircling her body. As it let up, she found she was now on the bridge leading into the city of Payon.


	7. the hot headed huntress?

Chisato stood at the entrance of Payon on the bridge, listening to the roaring river underneath her while she waited for the others to prepare. Thoma had gone to buy supplies with the zenny they had all chipped in and Fanged had gone with her. Bleu said she had to meet up with someone and would meet them at the Payon caves. Chisato and Cornflakes stayed behind on the bridge, letting them know to come fetch her when they were ready.

It has been a while since Chisato had last been here. It brought back a lot of memories for her.

Payon was known as the Archer Village, since all Archers and Hunters made their beginnings there. It was one of the smallest cities in Rune-Midgard, not nearly as populated as Geffen or Prontera. It was located in the middle of the forest on the outskirts of the city of Alberta, Chisato's hometown.

She thought back to when she first started out as a Novice. The ridicule she put up with from her family, and the trials she went through to make it to the city. The pain of training herself as an Archer was all worth it the day she became a Huntress. That day will always, in her mind, remain one of her greatest achievements, no matter what anyone else said or thought. She was too stubborn and proud to let anyone rain on her parade.

Chisato almost totally forgot about why she was here as she was absorbed in the atmosphere and let her mind wander deep in thought. As she stood on the bridge, looking over the railing at the water below, a voice from behind startled her.

"Well, are you coming or not?" came Fanged's voice, sounding impatient.

She turned around looking annoyed at the Knight, not liking to be interrupted. "Why? In a hurry for another ass kicking?" she said abruptly.

Fanged smirked at her, "Funny. You won't let me live that down will you?" He sounded half embarrassed, half miffed.

"Sorry," she smirked back, trying, but failing, to be nice. A little nagging voice in her mind reminded her not to judge him for being a Knight but she couldn't help it. It was a prejudice that was hard for her to shake. Maybe it was his attitude from the day before that she just couldn't get out of her mind. At least with Aaogan she could look past it since he was nice off the bat.

"Anyway," he continued, changing the subject, "Thoma went on ahead to the caves and said to meet her there, though take your time. She wanted to try and sell off some more stuff before we head in."

"I see..." she said, turning her attention back to the water below.

"So what are we looking at?" said Fanged as he moved over to stand next to her, not realizing Cornflakes was there. The Poring let out a squeak in protest to almost being stepped on, making Fanged jump back.

Chisato glared over at him, now feeling irritated, as Cornflakes mouthed off at the Knight about being more careful where he steps.

Fanged waved his palm at him and apologized profusely to him and Chisato.

Chisato said nothing and began to walk down the bridge toward the city. Cornflakes stuck his tongue out at Fanged then joined her. Fanged also followed to her dismay.

They hadn't gotten far up the bridge when they heard screams come from the town followed by a young, female Assassin that came running toward them. As she had gotten closer they noticed she was wearing a set of Katars that seemed to be dripping with a reddish substance. She had a scared and angry look about her face as she approached them. One of her eyes was covered by her short blue hair. Chisato had noticed for a brief moment when the wind had pushed it aside that it seemed to be a different, abnormal color from the other blue one.

Fanged pushed Chisato behind him as she was getting ready to take aim with her bow. He unsheathed his sword and pointed it to the oncoming Assassin. Chisato roughly pushed Fanged back out of her way knowing what he was trying to do. She did not need his protection.

"Stop her! Don't let that murderer get away!" came the yells from the small crowd following up behind. The Assassin stopped, looked behind her at the approaching crowd, then back at Chisato and Fanged, who momentarily had their attention off her as they bickered between themselves. She feigned as if to come at them, but took a sudden leap, flipping over their heads and landing behind them.

Shocked at the sudden action of the Assassin, the two looked back at her, mouths agape, as she sped off. Chisato aimed her bow again to hit the 'sin in the leg when the rushing crowd caught up to them and knocked her to the side. Her arrow flew out from her bow toward the water as she fell flat on her ass. Before she realized what happened the Assassin was gone and the crowd was out the gates. She cursed loudly and looked back to Fanged. He held Cornflakes in his hands.

"I guess this makes up for me almost stepping on you," he said to him, for he had just saved him from being trampled on by the stampeding crowd. Cornflakes gave a small squeak of approval and bounced over to Chisato whom was starting to get back to her feet.

Fanged held out his hand to help Chisato back up. Chisato knocked it away and got to her feet on her own. "Yeah thanks a lot," she said sounding peeved.

"Huh? What did I do?" he said sounding confused.

"I didn't need you to protect me there. Thanks to you she got away. If you hadn't jumped in front of me I could have shot her down!" she said, her voice rising.

"Hey, sorry if I was just trying to help," he said, looking pissed and hurt.

"I don't need _your_ help," she said, then turned and stormed off away from him.

"Yeah whatever. I'll remember that next time Miss Hot Headed Huntress," he yelled back at her.

They entered the city, not talking to each other, when they noticed a large crowd had gathered near the Payon temple. They could see it was the place that the incident with the Assassin and another person had taken place. Chisato caught tidbits of rumors going all around about some rivalry that had sparked between the Assassin and the victim that stemmed from a long time ago. She didn't stay around long enough to really hear much more or see who it was, for her and Fanged seemed to be trying to move ahead of one another while heading in the direction of Payon Caves.

The walk through Archer Village couldn't go by fast enough, for the sooner she didn't have to be alone with Fanged, the better, for she was feeling awkward. She finally saw Thoma up ahead dealing with a few other people. As she finished she took notice of Chisato and Fanged approaching.

"Oh good, you're here," she started to say when she noticed the look on their faces. "What's the matter?"

Chisato was about to answer with a simple "Nothing" when Fanged beat her to it saying, "Incident in town. Someone got whacked by an Assassin."

Thoma looked dumbstruck and mouthed an 'Oh my God.' "What happened?" she said aloud.

"Not really sure," he said giving a shrug. "Didn't really stay long enough to get the whole story."

"Oh..." Thoma said, a hint of disappointment in her voice.

Meanwhile, Chisato got a look into Thoma's cart, double checking for herself that Thoma had bought her the right arrows for the trip. Silvers were always the best choice when tackling Payon Caves. Bonguns and Munaks were especially weak to those, along with a lot of the other undead things that lurked around down there.

Chisato noticed Cornflakes also trying to take a peek inside but pulled him away by his backpack. She flashed him a look of _"I wouldn't if I were you"_ before dropping him back down to the ground.

As Fanged finished telling Thoma about the incident in town, Thoma turned back to Chisato. "Is everything you need there? Hope I didn't forget anything," she said looking back at her cart and shuffling a few items around. "I didn't buy as many reds this time since we have Bleu with us," she continued without waiting for Chisato to assure her she had gotten what she needed.

"Speaking of which," Chisato chimed in, "where is Bleu?" Chisato realized she was nowhere to be seen. "Hadn't she returned yet?"

"Oh, she did. But unfortunately we found out we need permission to enter the lower levels of the caves. The Payon Guard decided it was too dangerous with that psycho Wizard to let just anyone wander around down there. Bleu went to get us some passes. She should be back shortly," Thoma explained as she continued to sort items around her cart.

Chisato sat down to the side of the road in the grass nearing the entrance to the Caves. She noticed Fanged had walked off a bit more near the caves alone. Thoma looked up from her cart and took notice to Fanged sitting so far off, then turned to Chisato. "Geeze, what's up with that?"

"Meh, who knows," Chisato said, not wanting to say anything about the spat they had on the bridge. "Maybe he just likes to be alone. Said people called him the 'Lone Wolf' right?"

Thoma grinned and was about to respond when Cornflakes spoke up.

"You probably hurt his feelings Chisato. Yup, I think you did," he said so matter of factly.

Chisato grabbed a hold of Cornflakes and put her hand over his mouth. "Shush you," she said through gritted teeth.

Thoma cocked a brow at her and Cornflakes as she sat down next to them. "Uh? What happened?"

"Nothing really, just a slight misunderstanding," Chisato said trying to play it off as not a big deal.

"Chisato yelled at him for trying to protect her," Cornflakes said in a muffled squeak.

"Chisato! Why would you do that?" Thoma scolded. She looked over to Fanged, whom sat quietly under a tree near the entrance of the Cave, chewing on a piece of grass and seemed to be looking off into the distance and not paying attention to anyone.

Chisato frowned. "It wasn't my fault. He jumped in front of me when I was aiming for that Assassin on the bridge. If he hadn't done so I could have gotten her."

"You mean the murderer?"

"Yes."

"Sounds just like what, Cornflakes wasn't it? What Cornflakes said. He was probably only trying to keep you out of harm's way."

"Peh, I don't need his protection," Chisato spat turning her head in the other direction away from Thoma and Fanged.

Thoma looked back at Fanged, then frowned at Chisato, "He didn't want ours either, remember? Maybe this was just his way of repaying you his debt."

Chisato kept her head turned away from Thoma's gaze. What she said was probably true, but Chisato never liked to be told she was wrong. "Maybe....." she finally grumbled.

Chisato stayed quiet for a while, glancing off into the distance as Thoma attended to a few random customers. Through her sulking, she caught sight of Bleu standing not too far from them, but she wasn't alone. Standing next to her, talking, was a familiar face that made Chisato's mouth drop and her face go white. It was Kali.

"Ta..Thoma look, next to Bleu," she stammered, glancing back over to Thoma and tapping her on the arm, motioning in Bleu's direction.

Thoma looked over in Bleu's direction. "Oh good, she's back finally."

Chisato looked back to see Bleu was walking toward them, alone. "What? Where did she go?"

"Where did who go?"

"The Priestess that was next to Bleu!"

"Chisato what are you talking about?"

"You didn't see Kali standing next to Bleu only a moment ago?"

Thoma looked at Chisato like she had a screw or two loose and shook her head.

Chisato glanced down to Cornflakes in her lap, who seemed to be nodding off. She shook the Poring till he stirred a bit. "Cornflakes, did you see her?"

Cornflakes yawned. "See who?" he asked looking up at her, a bit irritated at being awakened.

"Forget it, just.....forget it." Chisato, now realizing that she was sounding crazy, dropped it abruptly as Bleu was almost near enough to hear them. If she was crazy she didn't want Bleu to confirm it by saying that Kali was never there.

"Welcome back Bleu," Thoma said as Bleu got close to them.

"Thank you," Bleu smiled at her.

Fanged was now also by their side. Chisato and Thoma got to their feet to prepare for their departure into the Caves.

"Got everything we need?" asked Thoma to Bleu, referring to the passes to enter Payon Caves.

"Yes," she said softly, then handed each one of them a small parchment.

"Great!" Thoma replied and then peered back into her cart, letting them all know what items she picked for their specific needs, such as Blue Gems for Bleu, and arrows and traps for Chisato.

"Is everyone ready then?" asked Fanged as he spit out the piece of grass he had been chewing on.

"Yeah, I guess so," said Chisato, double checking her quiver of arrows to be sure she had enough at hand.

"Ready as I'll ever be," answered Thoma as she picked up her cart and started to pull it in the direction of the Caves.

The rest followed, and thus began their venture down.


End file.
